Survival

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Risk Factors

Most common backcountry injuries.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Evacuate or Wait for Rescue?

Your buddy just slid down a steep scree and broke his leg. Should you go for help–or haul him out? It's a tough call. The answer depends on several factors. Here's how to decide.

Protect Your Vision in the Backcountry

Here's how to prevent–and treat–three common backcountry eye problems.

The Manual: Deluxe Winter Camping

Don't let frigid temps keep you inside. Here are five tips for deluxe winter camping.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Stay or Go?

Use this chart to determine if you can finish your trip–or should hightail it to the ER.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: First Aid Improv

"Be prepared" is a great maxim, but be honest: Who among you packs a SAM splint and an irrigation syringe on every backpacking trip? Fear not–everyday items can serve as medical equipment in a pinch.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Extreme First Aid

When you're miles away from medical help and it's serious: Here's how to handle extreme injuries in the backcountry.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Muscles & Bones

Sprains, strains, and fractured bones. Here's what to do in the case of a distressed limb.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Environmental Threats

As much as we try to protect ourselves from extreme elements, sometimes the elements hedge even our greatest efforts. Here's what to do when Mother Nature wins.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Heavy Bleeding

Check out what to do when it's much more than a simple scrape or puncture wound.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual: Animal & Insect Bites

Though we love backcountry wildlife (well, mostly), sometimes we get no love back. Read up on what to do when Mother Nature bites.

The Ultimate First-Aid Manual

Treating injuries miles from the ER is an essential skill. But don't pack a medical text: Instead, learn what really matters. Wilderness Medicine Institute cofounder Buck Tilton boils down a lifetime's worth of experience into 62 tips every hiker should know. Read it, save it–and go forth to save lives.

Gear Review: Essential Gear Windmill Classic Lighter

This refillable lighter is a snap to ignite–even with frigid fingers.

Winter Camping: Safety & Survival

Assess your winter climbing risks with this handy chart.

BACKPACKER Halloween Special

Heading out into the woods this weekend? Stock up on scary ghost stories and frightening trail tales in our special Halloween section.

America's Scariest Trails: Bloodthirsty Creatures

Bigfoot? He's a softy compared to the other menacing monsters lurking in the woods near you.

America's Scariest Trails: Supernatural Sights

Alpine views and starry skies are nice, but on these unsettling hikes you might see something really stunning.

America's Scariest Trails: Tragedy in the Grand Canyon

When bodies can't be buried, do their spirits ever rest? Hike to the scene of this wreck and find out.

America's Scariest Trails: Yosemite's Supernatural Wind

Go ahead and hike to this park's famous lakes and waterfalls. Just watch your step–and your back.

America's Scariest Trails: Mt. Washington's Phantom Crowds

Never let your guard down on this deadly peak, where the weather–and spirits–are unpredictable.

America's Scariest Trails: Big Bend's Deadly Past

With more than 200 murders recorded here, it's no wonder the Chisos Mountains are named for ghosts.

The Lost Boy of the Ozarks

After three decades of silence, a reporter reveals the story he was afraid to write.

The Boy Scout Quiz Answers & Scoring

How to Start a Fire With Fungus

Chaga, or "tinder fungus" and other natural firestarters abound in the backcountry–you just have to know where to look for them.

The Boy Scout Quiz

Could you earn a merit badge in wilderness travel? Better ace this test, taken straight from the Scouts' own backpacking manual.

Are You Smarter Than a Boy Scout?

Scoutmasters wrote the book on camping, and built an army of pack-toting teens. But do the troops truly rule when it comes to outdoor skills? We pitted three Scouts against three average readers to find out.

Higher Education: Should 13-Year-Old Jordan Romero Climb Everest?

Romero climbed Denali at 11 and has bagged five of the Seven Summits. He hopes to climb Everest in 2010, but is mountain climbing good for a growing kid?

Which Water Treatment is for You?

Fast, hassle-free, ultralight,–we explore five different water treatment scenarios and the right system to use.

Gear Review: Ultimate Survival Technology Sparkie Firestarter

A waterproof firestarter that requires only one hand.

Yellowstone Rescue Dogs: Could This Dog Save Your Life?

Kristin Bjornsen hikes into the Sierras to meet Gus, a new breed of highly trained rescue professional that's already patrolling Yosemite for lost and injured backpackers.

Professor Rescue: Q & A with SAR Statistician Robert Koester

By crunching numbers on the thousands of lost hiker cases in the backcountry each year, Robert Koester hopes to keep you on track.

There's a Bomb in My Backpack

Could a trail-savvy terrorist hike a nuke into America through wilderness areas on the Canadian border? An anonymous hiker-patriot alerts the White House.

Save Your Life With a Cell Phone

Don't leave it in the car–mobile phones are the latest essential rescue gear.

How to Read a River

When runoff turns a nice stream nasty, use these tips to cross safely.

Treat a Snakebite

Four myths about snakebites, dispelled.

Avoid Outdoor Risks: Win the Mental Game

Even expert hikers can take foolish risks. Stay smart–and safe–with these tips.

Readers' Choice 2010

We want your stories! Your photos! Your best trips and tips and all-time favorite gear! For this special edition of our Readers' Choice Awards, we're using your best stuff to create our January 2010 issue.

Readers' Choice 2010: Submit Your Favorite Skills Tip

Readers' Choice 2010: Submit a Backcountry Story

How To: Build a Snow Shelter

Tents are better, but if the time comes, building a snow shelter isn't that hard.

Survive This: Caught in a Blizzard

Use these simple tips to survive the storm.

The Fix: An Ultralight Repair Kit

When you're trying to save weight, repair gear is often the first thing you're tempted to eliminate.

The Cure: Treating Frostbite

Frostnip and frostbite are poetic names for a serious health issue: frozen skin. Frostnip occurs when the first layer of skin freezes, creating pale blotches on the affected area (usually the fingers and toes). If unchecked, the condition deepens into frostbite, in which multiple layers of skin freeze. Frostbite turns the flesh white and makes it feel solid to the touch. It often causes permanent tissue damage, and in rare cases requires amputation.

Travel Like a Pro: For the Extreme Traveler

Bound for one of the globe's most exotic locales? Thrive in any environment with these tips.

Review: Adventure Medical Kits SmartTRAVEL First Aid Kit

From stings to dehydration, this fully-stocked kit has everything you'd need to handle a medical issue, even when overseas

Pioneering Frostbite Treatment

One Minnesota doctor and his team have discovered a new treatment that reduces the need for amputations.

Survive This: Frostbitten Feet

Frostbite is bad news. Learn how to safely treat frozen feet.

Where is the Spookiest Place to Hike?

How to Do Everything - First Aid & Health

Close a wound, remove a tick, prevent poison ivy rash, and more essential tips.

Freeplay FreeCharge 12V

Diagnosis of Disaster

Experts dissect the missteps in five recent hiking tragedies

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Mist Trail, Half Dome, CA

Swallowed by Sierra scenery

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Abrams Falls, Great Smoky Mtns., TN

Drowning in beauty

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Buckskin Gulch, UT

Gambling in the slots

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Kalalau Trail, Kauai, HI

Killer coastline

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Huckleberry Mtn., Apgar Range, MT

Fatten griz for winter

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Muir Snowfield, Mt. Rainier, WA

Where winter strikes year-round

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Mt. Washington, NH

It'll blow you away

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Barr Trail, Pikes Peak, CO

A hair-raising hike

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - Bright Angel Trail, Grand Canyon, AZ

Baked or broiled?

The Danger Scale

How we rate risk, using a highly scientific formula

America's 10 Most Dangerous Hikes - The Maze, UT

Lost in the labyrinth

I Will Survive

Flesh-eating bears. Dive-bombing eagles. Can a regular guy escape certain death armed with only the clothes on his back and the skills he learned on TV from Les Stroud, Bear Grylls, and John Rambo?

Ultimate Survival Kit

Want to make it out alive? Consider packing these 17 items carried by a veteran Yosemite search-and-rescue ranger.

Who's the Ultimate Survivor?

We settle the debate with winner-takes-all smackdown: Meet history's true hard man.

Headfirst Down the McKinley

A sudden swim in a glacier-fed river nearly finishes a ranger.

Man Versus Rock

A staged photo op in the Tetons results in a near-crushing.

Fighting Death on Mt. Foraker

Stunned by the loss of his friends, a stranded climber struggles down one of Alaska's toughest peaks.

Lost in the Olympics

A gym teacher's speed hike becomes a five-day bushwhack in Olympic National Park.

Caught in a Colorado Snowstorm

An autumn climb turns life-threatening when a hiker endures a night in a whiteout at 12,000 feet in the Rockies.

Life-or-Death Decisions - Caught in a Storm

Life-or-Death Decisions - Injury

Life-or-Death Decisions - Lost

Life-or-Death Decisions

Survival depends on more than dumb luck–to live to see another day, you must correctly navigate a tricky series of choices. Here's how to do it when the consequences couldn't be higher.

Rescue Me!

On a snowy night in New Hampshire, Congressional candidate Gary Dodds crashed his car, wandered into the woods, and collapsed. Twenty-seven hours later, rescuers carried him out. And then the real drama began.

Natural Born Killers: Top Backcountry Dangers

Which is the bigger backcountry threat, grizzlies or flash floods? Find out what should scare you–and how to survive it–with BACKPACKER's Terror Index.

Never Fear: The Phobias

Use this step-by-step guide to beat 7 common backcountry fears. Plus, ideal hikes for overcoming–or avoiding–the source of your scare.

Never Fear: The Fix

Conquer any fear with this DIY guide to applying a proven treatment plan called cognitive- behavioral therapy. Think of it as training for the mind.

Never Fear: Q&A with Barbara Rothbaum

Never Fear: How to Beat Backcountry Phobias

Don't let groundless phobias ruin–or even prevent–your backcountry adventures. Here's a foolproof plan for overcoming your terrors.

How to Rescue an Injured Hiker

Your partner can't go on. Should you stay–or go for help?

Survive This: You're Wet & Cold

Here's how to avoid hypothermia.

Danger Signs: Flash Flood

July to mid-September is prime time for heavy rains in the Southwest, where fast-rising water in narrow canyons can turn trickling streams into deadly torrents. Don't get swept away.

Survive This: Bitten by a (Rabid?) Animal

Chomped by a critter? Here's what to do.

Danger Signs: Bear Country

Hiking where bears are present (that's more than 40 states) always requires precautions, like hanging food. But these three signals demand extra vigilance.

25 Habits of Highly Effective Hikers

Guarantee yourself a great adventure– every time–by adopting these proven routines for planning and pulling off the perfect trip.

Return of the Survivor: Q&A with Steve Friedman

In this exclusive Q&A, Steve Friedman talks about trying out the techniques of TV's survival show hosts Bear Grylls and Les Stroud in the (real) wild.

The Ultimate "Survive This!" Archive

If you can imagine it, we've seen it-and offered expert analysis. From avalanches to volcanoes, this archive contains step-by-step plans for escaping a slew of mishaps that can befall weary travelers.

Backpacker Survival Poll

What do you pack? What's the most important skill? Let us know in this online poll, and we'll publish your answers in the October issue of Backpacker magazine.

Survive This: Separated From Group

If you get lost from your hiking party, here's how to get found–fast.

Survive This: Swarming Wasps

Forget all the rules about freezing or making yourself big. When faced with these angry beasts run for cover.

Survive This: A Plunge into Raging Whitewater

Learn how to battle your way out of a raging river with these tips.

Survive This: Trapped by a Rock

When a scramble turns to a nightmare learn how to help yourself.

Survive This: Lost in the Desert

When you're stuck in the desert unexpectedly conserve, conserve, conserve.

Survive This: Stuck on a Scree Slope

When you're slipping and sliding, don't let your partners help you. Learn how to climb yourself to safety.

Survive This: Volcanic Eruption

Don't worry about lava. Worry about rocks and mud and ash.

Survive This: Sudden Illness on the Trail

Beware of dehydration when a sudden illness strikes.

A Dozen Ways to Die

How do hikers meet their maker in the backcountry? The answers may surprise you.

Survival Story: Surviving a Grizzly Attack in Glacier National Park

On August 25, 2005, Johan Otter and his 18-year-old daughter, Jenna, hiked right into the worst nightmare of any Glacier National Park backpacker: a 300-pound mother grizzly protecting two cubs. Here, in his own words, the 45-year-old physical therapist from Escondido, CA, shares the incredible story of their life-and-death struggle.

Missing in Action: How a Backcountry Ranger With 28 Years Experience Disappeared

Did High Sierra ranger Randy Morgenson succumb to depression or disaster?

Lost: True Tales of Wilderness Treks Gone Desperately Wrong

From snowblindness to wrong turns, everyday wilderness adventures can turn ugly if you're not prepared for everything.

Learning About Survival Where Aron Ralston Outwitted Death

Follow correspondent Kevin Fedarko into the remote Utah slot canyon where Ralston famously separated himself from his right forearm.

Lost & Found

John Donovan disappeared in a high-elevation blizzard, leaving rescuers and friends stumped. His backpack contained a miracle clue. Bill Donahue investigates.

How to Stay Safe in the Wilderness

Retracing the route to people's accidents can help us prevent our own. These 10 trips lead you to the exact locations of disasters from Denali to the Grand Canyon.

How to Survive A Night Without Gear

When a day hike turns into an overnight, learn how to take care of yourself.

Snake Bite First-Aid

Learn the steps to take if you're bitten by a poisonous snake.

Escape From Unfriendly Natives

On the trail black bears, skunks, grizzlies, rattlesnakes, and ticks are not your friend. Learn how to side-step them.

How to Build a Never-Fail Campfire

Where campfires are allowed, it's important to know how to build–and put out–flames properly.

Packing List: Survival Kit

Always be prepared for adversity with these pieces of gear.

Calculate Trouble

Time is of the essence in the backcountry. Learn how long it will take an impending thunderstorm or avalanche to find you.

18 Sudden Threats: The Right and Wrong Responses

Things happen fast in the wilderness. It's important to learn the right and wrong actions beforehand so you can react accordingly.

Medicine Man: Your Source for Wilderness Survival

Wilderness guru Buck Tilton answers your pressing wilderness medicine and rescuequestions

Ask the Experts: Gear and Survival Advice

Our pros Kristin Hostetter and Buck Tilton get you ready for the trails ahead.

Learn How to Use an Ice Axe

Master these skills to make your axe a tool—not a toy.

Learn Backcountry First Aid

Use this quick guide to determine what type of backcountry first aid training you need.

Danger Signs: How to Detect a Winter Storm

Learning to determine winter weather signs depends on where you are.

How to Survive Getting Lost In a Whiteout

Don't forge ahead when faced with whiteout conditions.

How to Survive Winter Storms

New Hampshire's Mt. Washington is know for its evil weather. Learn how to survive a winter storm from one of the peak's experts.

Over the Rainbow: Finding Red Rock In the Navajo Nation

A rarely-attempted traverse reveals the Navajo Nation's vast red-rock wilderness.

Survive This: Meeting a Menacing Stranger On the Trail

Learn how to avoid shady characters on the trail.

Survive a Mangled Ankle

Help yourself hike out after an ankle injury

Quiz: Would You Survive?

The wilderness can be deadly if you don't know what you're doing. Take our test to rate your survival IQ—and learn a few skills that might save your hide.

PANIC!: How to Survive in the Backcountry

There's a backcountry killer on the loose, and it's not hypothermia, grizzly bears, or rockfall. The thing mostly likely to maim you on your next hiking trip is living inside your head.

The Source of All Things

What if your favorite place in the world was ground zero for your greatest strengths and your deepest fears? The author and her father trek into Idaho's Sawtooth Mountains to grapple with a tragedy that has haunted them for decades.

Essential Survival Skills

Guaranteed to get you out of trouble fast.

Blue John Canyon: Feeling Gravity's Pull

A pilgrim heads into the canyon where Aron Ralston lost his arm to pin down the meaning of survival.

The Big Question: Rescue Tools

If you need to be rescued, is a satellite phone a better choice than a personal locator beacon?

Start smart: First Aid For Kids

Teach your youngsters the basics; it could save your life.

How to Ford A River

Forget bears and lightning: The most common and dangerous backcountry hazard is a river crossing. Here's how to do it safely.

Survive This: Caught between a Mama Bear and Her Cub

Here's how to get out of the middle when motherly instincts kick in.

Burn, Baby, Burn

3 surefire ways to light a reluctant fire

Survival Starts With A Kiss

Learn the latest survival smarts with this military acronym

Cold Sleepers vs. Hot Sleepers

One camper sweats and another shivers. What's the deal?

Stone Cold Campers

They kill swiftly and silently. They flit like ghosts through enemy forests. And they will brew you a fine cup of cowboy coffee. Meet America's deadliest hikers as we hump ruck with the Special Forces.

Water Worries

How much H2O do you really need on the trail?

How Pete Stays Dry

3 waterproof secrets from veteran mountaineer Pete Takeda

Good Gear Gone Bad

It's all fun and games 'til someone gets a tent pole in the eye.

Ultralight Warmth

Keep arms and legs warm with gear invented by cyclists.

My Crest Is SPF 30

Preventing sunburn is as simple as brushing your teeth.

Mountain Miles

Calculate real mileage by accounting for slope in the mountains, and you'll avoid getting into camp after dark.

Stay Warm In Winter

Winter warmth is easy with these tips from arctic explorers, cold-weather experts, and army docs.

Winterize Your Camp

Tips to take with you when the snow flies.

Dreams Of Tibet: Exploring Lost Himalayan Mountains And Cultures

Deep in the heart of the forbidden Tibetan kingdom, a long-awaited adventure inherited from the author's father takes an unexpected twist.

Trapped! The Mike Turner Story

Deep in Wyoming's Wind River Range, an accident with a sliding boulder makes a hiker confront his life, his fate, and his faith in God.

Healthy Hiking For Men: Preventing Jock Itch And Other Problems 'Down There'

A wilderness guide to proper care and maintenance of the family jewels.

Your Backwoods Pharmacy

When illness or injury strikes, the medicine you need is in the plants alongside the trail and at your feet.

Ultralight Backpacking Do's and Don'ts

Jon provides first-hand advice for ultralight beginners.

Frustrate Bears With A Rock Sack

This homemade rock sack will help you hang your food bag faster and better.

The Urge To Fly

Do you ever have the urge to step off the edge and fly like a bird?

Blazing Trails: Avoid Wildfires

Here's a handy tip to avoid wildfires in the backcountry.

Drinking Risky Water

If disaster leaves you deep in the backcountry without any means to disinfect drinking water, what do you do? Follow these methods to stay hydrated without getting sick.

Lost Soul Or Yukon Slasher?

When you're deep in the wilds, a bedraggled stranger wandering into camp triggers a moral dilemma: Offer him dinner or run for the hills?

Winter Camping Tips: The Perfect Tent Pitch

How and where you should set up your winter tent for maximum comfort and shelter longevity.

Lightning Survival Update

If you're caught in a lightning storm on the trail, head for the hills.

Walking On Water

Face it: you aren't Moses and the waters won't part, so here are ways to cross wild rivers safely.

Teepee Tent Setup Secrets

Hard-won tips for pitching tepee tents on any terrain

Just Go

Sometimes, despite all the commitments and obligations, you know what you have to do.

Winter Tips For Cold Hands And Feet

A little motion brings the heat back.

Cold Doesn't Always Mean Dead

You can freeze to death and still live to tell about it.

Another Tick-Borne Disease

You can add another disease to those you might get from ticks: ehrlichiosis.

Snow Smarts

How to travel safely across four seasons of white.

Before You Snowshoe

Follow these tips when you embark on your next snowshoeing journey.

Hypothermia: Just The Facts

Quick Tips to Prevent, Recognize, and Treat Hypothermia.

When Hiking, Beware Dirty Water

Unless you're partial to polluted water, don't fill your bottle during or just after a major storm.

Bear Spray: Packin' Heat

It's basically pepper in an aerosol can, and it's supposed to stop a charging grizzly. But will it? Here's everything you need to know.

Wind Chill Bites

Wind chill can nip noses or lead to frostbite. Here's what you should know.

Lightning Tips

Where not to be during lightning.

A Hair-Raising Experience

Why two commonly held lightning-safety beliefs could get you fried, plus expert advice.

Only You Can Avoid Forest Fires

Here's what to do if you're caught near a wilderness wildfire.

How To Deal With River Crossings

Crossing rivers can be treacherous -- unless you know what you're doing.

Mountain Safety

Make sure you know how to stay safe in the mountains.

Winter Harm: Cold Dangers

Cold can harm in subtle and quick ways, so it pays to be prepared.

American Climber Alex Lowe Presumed Dead

After hours of searching through ice chunks and piles of snow on Shishapangma Mountain, searchers have called off an avalanche rescue mission to find American climbers Alex Lowe and Dave Bridges.

Building Shelter

How to build a shelter if you get stuck in the backcountry.

The Wisdom of Abo Dude

To all the techno-weenies with your space-age outdoor gear, Cody Lundin has some advice: For that day when your butt's on the line, you better know how to get primitive.

Signaling For Help

How to signal for help if you get lost.

Survival Skills: Finding Water

How to find emergency water in the backcountry.

Survival Kit

Make your own backcountry survival kit.

Your Homemade Survival Kit

Make your own backcountry insurance policy.

Tales Of A Wilderness Rescuer

After you've spent a cold, drizzly, miserable night searching for a lost or injured hiker, sometimes a few simple words of thanks make it all worthwhile.

How To Splint A Bum Knee

Pretend Your Leg Is A Jelly Roll.

Hypothermia 101

As the temperature dips, hypothermia can threaten survival for backwoods adventurers unaware of its warning signs.

Paul Schurke: Chillin' With The Iceman

Your odds of surviving, much less enjoying, a -30°F night in the woods rate right up there with a snowball's chance in you-know-where. That is, unless you make friends with a guy they call The Iceman.

Drowning Victims: In Over Your Head

Your partner just disappeared under an icy torrent. Quick, do you know what to do next?